


Between the Walls

by thatwriterlady



Series: October Drabbles 2017 [26]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Attraction, Fluff, M/M, Neighbors, Prompt Fic, Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-26
Updated: 2017-10-26
Packaged: 2019-01-23 08:40:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12503416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatwriterlady/pseuds/thatwriterlady
Summary: Cas keeps hearing this squeaking noise in the walls between his townhouse unit and the one next door.  He begins to suspect that there might be mice, so he takes it upon himself to go and talk to his new neighbor about the problem.





	Between the Walls

**Author's Note:**

> The word for today is "Squeak". I had no idea what to even do for this one, so I brainstormed with **XHaruka17** again, and she helped me come up with this one. I hope you all like this one. Enjoy!

**Day 26~**

**Squeak~**

Cas was wiping down his kitchen table when he heard a strange squeaking noise.  He tilted his head, listening but it only lasted a few moments before it was gone.  Odd, he’d never heard that before.  When it went away he shook his head and went back to cleaning. 

 

A half hour later as he curled up on his couch with a book, he heard the noise again, this time in the room with him.  He lowered the book and looked around but there was nothing that he could see making the noise.  His cat Cleo was sound asleep on her cat stand in the corner of the room so it definitely wasn’t her making the noise.  Sitting up, he cocked his head, listening.  There it was again, slightly further way this time.  He closed the book and stood up.

 

“What the hell is that noise?”  He growled.  Cleo cracked one yellow eye open to look at him but didn’t lift her head.  She watched him turn and head up the stairs to the second floor before closing it again and drifting back off.  Humans made such big deals out of nothing.

 

Upstairs, Cas followed the squeaking sound.  It seemed to move from room to room, but only along the left wall.  He lived in a two story townhouse and with horror, he suddenly realized there were probably mice in the walls between his unit and the one next door.  That meant a call to the exterminator, and that was not a bill he wanted to foot on his own.  The unit next door had stood empty until recently and he had not yet met his new neighbor, but he felt it was important to inform him that they might very well have a rodent issue.  First though, he wanted to check the exterior of the property to see how the little bastards were getting in.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

A thorough check of the entire perimeter didn’t reveal any space wide enough for mice to get into.  It was truly frustrating.  He climbed the stairs and rang his neighbor’s doorbell. 

 

It was a few minutes before he heard the heavy footsteps approaching, but then the door was opening.  He found himself face to face with a very attractive man with bright green eyes and a smoking hot body.  The man cocked an eyebrow in interest and smiled.

 

“Hey, you live next door, right?”

 

“I do.  I’m sorry to bother you, but I suspect we may have a rodent problem.”

 

The man frowned.  “Well come in, we can talk about that.”  He held the door open more and Cas stepped inside.  He’d expected to find the townhouse still in a state of disarray but for the most part, the place was unpacked and everything was in its place.  The place looked very nice.

 

“You say you saw mice?  Or was it rats?”  The man asked as he closed the door.  “Oh, and by the way, I’m Dean.”  He offered his hand and Cas shook it firmly.

 

“I’m Cas.  I didn’t see them, exactly, but I’ve been hearing them all day.  There’s been this squeaking noise in the walls between your unit and mine.  I first heard it in the kitchen, and then in the living room.  Later I heard it upstairs.  I checked outside but I can’t find how they’re getting in.”

 

Dean listened with concern until something seemed to click for him.

 

“Wait, you said you heard squeaking?”

 

“Yes, on and off all day.”

 

“Oh, I was oiling the hinges on my doors today.  Every door in this stupid place squeaks so bad it’s ridiculous.  The back door was the worst, sounded like something out of a horror movie.  I mostly use the front door and I don’t open and close the doors that much, but my brother’s coming to stay with me, and I thought I’d get them all oiled before he gets here, because we both like our privacy, and the spare bedroom door backs up to your place, and that door was pretty bad.  I bet that’s what you were hearing.  I still have two more doors to do.  Come here, check this out.”  Dean started down the hall towards the kitchen, stopping at the closet that served as the laundry area.  It had a pair of bi-fold louver doors but next to it was a small linen closet.  He grabbed the handle and pulled the door open.  It squeaked loudly. 

 

“What on earth?  Mine did _not_ sound like that when I moved in.”  Cas said.

 

“I’m finding a lot of moisture damage here.  I think they had a whole house humidifier.  All of the door jams are swollen and the hinges are rusted.  I pulled up the carpet upstairs, it was all ruined, and I’m laying down hardwood floors.  I have one more room to finish.”  Dean explained as he pointed out the rust and swollen wood.

 

“They complained a lot about sinus issues, the whole family.  I told them if it was such a problem to just pull up the carpet but they argued about that.  I removed my carpet when I moved in.  I’m allergic to carpet.”  Cas watched as Dean used some WD-40 and oiled the hinges.  When the door closed next, it was almost silent.

 

“That explains a lot.  I bet they had one humidifier down here and individual ones in the rooms upstairs.  It’s ridiculous.  I can fix most of this.  At least there’s no obvious mold that I can see.”  Dean said as he set the can of oil down on the kitchen table.

 

“They only lived here about a year before they suddenly just up and moved.  I admit, I was glad to see them go.  They were loud and rude, and their children left messes in the front and backyards.  Their daughter destroyed my rose bushes and I got into a fight with the mother about that.  My mother bought me that bush, and she passed away three years ago.  Luckily the plant survived, but that was painful thinking it wouldn’t and that I’d lost that part of her.”

 

“I had neighbors like that before.  It’s why I moved here.  You’ll be glad to know I’m pretty quiet.  I spend most of my time in my garage or crashed on my couch watching TV.  I don’t make a whole lot of noise.”  Dean smiled and Cas found himself smiling back.

 

“You’ll hardly notice me either.  I tend to read or watch the occasional movie when I’m home.  You may see me gardening most of the year though.  I spent a good portion of my time in the backyard.  I…like bees.” 

 

Dean smiled wider.  “That’s cute.  Bees are good though, we need to encourage them.  I don’t have any flowers yet.  My backyard is currently trashed and full of weeds and broken toys, so after I’m done fixing stuff in here, I’ll be fixing stuff out there.  Since our yards are connected, maybe you can help me so we get some kind of nice flow going.  I like roses.”

 

Cas glanced out the window over the kitchen sink at Dean’s yard.  It was a hot mess that he’d actually been itching to get his hands on.  “I’d like that.  I could help you plan out a nice garden.”

 

“So, do you live alone?”  Dean asked as he moved to the fridge and pulled out a couple of beers.  He offered one to Cas who thanked him as he accepted it.

 

“I do.  Well, it’s myself and my cat Cleo.  If you see a giant black furball in my gardens, that’s her.  She’s huge but she’s sweet.  Mostly she stays inside but if I’m in the yard, she likes to be out there with me.”

 

“Cool.  I like cats.”  Dean twisted off the top on his beer and took a sip.  “It’s just me, but soon it will be my brother Sam too, so if you see a guy coming and going, and he’s even taller than me with shaggy brown hair, that’s him.  He’ll probably introduce himself and want to talk about books.  He’s not so much into flowers though.”

 

“I don’t mind talking about books.  Will he be living here?”  Cas asked.

 

“Temporarily.  He just broke up with his girlfriend and he needs a place to stay for a while until he gets a new place of his own.”  Dean replied.

 

“Oh, poor guy, breakups are never easy.”  Cas shook his head sadly.  He felt bad for Sam.

 

“No, they’re not.”  Dean was looking at him and Cas got the idea that he was being checked out.  He found himself preening a bit under the man’s attention.  “Say, Cas, I was thinking of grilling later.  You want to come over?  Join me for dinner?”

 

“I would like that.  I was actually getting ready to make some chicken and vegetable kebabs.  I have the chicken marinating in the fridge and I could bring those over.  How do you feel about peppers and squash?”  Cas asked.

 

“I love them.”  Dean replied.  “I’ll make some other stuff and we can kick back and maybe watch a movie.”

 

“That sounds nice.  What time should I return with the kebabs?”

 

Dean checked his watch.  “I’ll fire up the grill at five.  It’s propane so it’ll heat up quickly.  I’ll run to the store and get some stuff now and you can be in my yard at five.”

 

Cas nodded.  “Sounds good.  I can make a salad too, how does that sound?”

 

Dean chuckled.  “You like your vegetables, don’t you?”

 

Cas grinned.  “I do.  I tend to eat rather healthy.”

 

“I was thinking of making bacon and cheddar burgers too.”  Dean said.  Cas’ eyes darkened.  It had been years since he’d had a good burger.

 

“I love burgers.”

 

“Wait til you try one of mine.”  Dean said, smirking confidently.

 

“I’ll hold you to that.” Cas said as he headed for the back door.

 

“See you at five?”  Dean asked as he leaned against the open door frame.

 

“At five.”  Cas confirmed as he descended the steps and started for his own porch.

 

Dean watched him disappear into his own house before he whipped his phone out.

 

“Hey, what’s up?”  Charlie answered on the second ring.

 

“I met my neighbor, the guy in the unit right next to mine.”  Dean blurted.

 

“And?  Tell me he’s not a crazy axe murderer.”  She groaned.

 

“No, the opposite.  He’s gorgeous, like drop dead gorgeous, and I totally got a “not straight” vibe off him, so I invited him to dinner tonight.  He said yes.  Am I crazy?  I think I’m crazy.  Fuck!  He’s so fucking _hot_!”

 

She snickered on the other end of the line.  “Relax.  So you invited him to dinner.  Have dinner, get to know him, find out which way he swings, let him know you’re definitely not straight, see how he reacts, and go from there.  If he’s not interested, at least you’ve made a friend.  If he’s interested, well, you won’t have to go far to see your boyfriend, right?”

 

Dean closed the back door and leaned against it.  “You’re right.  I’m making burgers on the grill tonight.  I have to run to the store to get meat and buns.  I think he’s interested.  I’m pretty sure I read him right.  I’ll let you know later.”

 

“Go get ‘em tiger, charm him with your awesome cooking skills and your killer smile.  He’s going to fall for your witty personality too, just you wait.”  She assured him.  He smiled, feeling better with that little confidence boost she was giving him.

 

“Thanks.  I’m going to run now.  We’ll talk later.”  He said.

 

“Later!” 

 

He hung up and stuffed his phone back in his pocket.  Just as he went to pour his mostly empty bottle of beer down the sink, he heard a scuffling noise near the fridge.  Turning to look, he spotted a tiny, gray mouse go scurrying around the other side to dart behind the cabinet.

 

“Oh, _hell_ no!”  He pulled his phone back out.  Cas was right after all.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments are welcome. Thank you for reading!


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